1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to terminal processing method and structure for a shield cable including a shielding member such as a shielding braid, a shielding tape, a drain line etc.
2. Description of Related Art
In general, in the shield cable including the shielding member, the shielding member is required to be grounded in order to effectively attain the shielding function thereof. Method and structure for grounding the terminal of the shielding member are known as means for grounding the shielding member. An example of such method and structure is shown in FIG. 5.
A unit casing 80 shown in the figure is arranged to house a control substrate therein, for example, and is grounded at least upon usage. A first connector 82 is fixed to the outer wall of the casing 80 by means of bolts 84. A bolt passing cylindrical portion 87 shaped so as to pass through a second connector in an axial direction thereof is formed at the second connector 86 which is coupled to the first connector 82. A bolt 88 is passed through the bolt passing cylindrical portion 87 and an end portion thereof is screwed into a screw hole (not shown) provided at the unit casing 80 side, whereby both the connectors 82, 86 are fixed (fastened) in a coupling state to each other.
A shield cable 90 includes a plurality of electric wires 91 and shielding braid covering them. Terminals of the electric wires 91 are coupled to terminals incorporated in the second connector 86, respectively. End portions of the shielding braid are twisted in a line shape to form a shielding braid wire 92. A rod-shaped coupling metal member 93 is fixed to a terminal of the shielding braid wire 92.
The connectors 82, 86 are arranged so as to be covered by a metal connector cover 94. A metal member press-in portion 96 in which the coupling metal member 93 is inserted with pressure is formed at a suitable portion on an inner surface of the connector cover 94. Attachment lug portions 98 having bolt passing through holes 97 are formed at a peripheral portions of the connector cover 94 so that bolts 100 can be inserted through the bolt passing through holes 97.
According to this structure, the connectors are coupled and the shielding braid wire 92 is grounded by the following procedure.
1) The end portion of the bolt 88 is screwed into the screw hole of the casing 80 while provisionally fitting the second connector 86 to the first connector 82 and inserting the bolt 88 into the bolt passing cylindrical portion 87 of the second connector 86, whereby the connectors 82 and 86 are coupled to each other.
2) The coupling metal member 93 fixed to the terminal of the shielding braid wire 92 is inserted with pressure into the metal member press-in portion 96. Then, the bolts 100 are screwed into the screw holes (not shown) provided at the unit casing 80 side through through holes 83 provided at the first connectors 82 while inserting the bolts 100 through the bolt passing through holes 97 formed at the attachment lug portions 98 of the connector cover 94. Thus, the connector cover 94 is fixed to the casing 80 and further the connector cover 94 is grounded through the bolts 100 and the casing 80. As a result, the shielding braid wire 92 being in an electrically coupled state to the connector cover 94 through the coupling metal member 93 is also grounded.
However, the configuration and the method shown in FIG. 5 have the following problems to be solved.
(1) In order to ground the shielding braid wire 92, it is required to form the metal member press-in portion 96 at the connector cover 94 and to electrically couple the connector cover 94 to the casing 80 side through the bolts 100. Thus, the configuration of the connector cover 94 becomes complicate and the number of the parts becomes large. Further, the metal member with electric conductivity must be necessarily employed as the connector cover 94. Thus, the connector cover 94 must not be eliminated and the material thereof is limited remarkably. Accordingly, it is impossible to employ light-weighted composite resin, for example, as the material of the connector cover 94.
2) In order to ground the shielding braid wire 92, it is required firstly to insert with pressure the coupling metal member 93 fixed to the terminal of the shielding braid wire 92 into the metal member press-in portion 96 of the connector cover 94 and to fix the connector cover 94 to the casing 80 by the bolts 100 while holding the press-in state of the coupling metal member 93. Such a procedure is very complicated and troublesome.
The invention has been made in view of the aforesaid circumstances and an object of the invention is to provide method and structure capable of grounding the shielding member of a shield cable easily with simple configuration.
In order to solve the aforesaid problems, the invention is a method of processing a terminal of a shielding member contained in a shield cable by utilizing:
a first connector fixed to a member grounded at least upon usage; and
a second connector having a terminal coupled to an electric wire contained in the shield cable, the second connector fastened to the first connector by means of a metal bolt,
a method of processing a terminal of the shield cable is arranged in that the bolt is screwed into a screw hole provided at the member to be grounded while passing the bolt through the first connector in a state that the terminal of the shield cable is electrically coupled to the bolt, whereby the first connector and the second connector are coupled to each other and the shielding member is electrically coupled to the member to be grounded through the bolt.
Further, the invention is a terminal processing structure for a shield cable having an electric wire and a shield member comprising:
a member grounded at least upon usage;
a screw hole formed at the member;
a first connector fixed to the member;
a second connector having a bolt passing through portion forming a bolt passing through hole, and the second connector having a terminal; and
a metal bolt,
wherein a terminal of the electric wire is coupled to the terminal of the second connector;
a terminal of the shielding member is electrically coupled to the metal bolt;
the metal bolt is passed through the bolt passing through hole and screwed into the screw hole thereby coupling the first connector and the second connector to each other.
According to these method and structure, the shielding member can be electrically coupled (that is, grounded) easily to the member grounded with the simple configuration by effectively using the metal bolt for combining the first connector and the second connector.
Though a particular means holding the connection between the terminal of the shielding member and the metal bolt is not required, when the terminal of the shielding member or a coupling metal member provided at the terminal of the shielding member is sandwiched and fixed between the bolt passing through portion and a head portion of the metal bolt, the coupling state between the shielding member and the metal bolt can be maintained surely without utilizing a particular fixing means.
In particular, according to the configuration in which a coupling metal member configured so as to fit to the bolt from an outside thereof is provided at the terminal of the shielding member and the coupling metal member is sandwiched and fixed between the bolt passing through portion and the head portion of the bolt, the shielding member can be coupled to the bolt in a more stable state as compared with the configuration that the terminal of the shielding member is directly sandwiched between the bolt passing through portion and the head portion of the bolt, for example.